New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1887-07-13
POLYGAMY IN Ut All.
The Power OF AIormonism said ToB
Rapidly, Dying Out

/
Rapidly Dying Out
a correspondent of The Springfield
Mass. Repa6licdn at Salt Lake City
writes: The great majority of the
Hormons are foreigners, prosecuted in
their own country by emissaries from
Utah; transported by the church direct
! from their own homes to Utah; kept
total ignorance of the yastness of the
United States and the powers and prin-
:iples of its governments; constantly
mbued with the belief that the Nor
non people are Gods chosen; that the
Mormon church is the only true church,
md to it and its priests they must be
pyd even to the disobeying of all other
avs of any land. Thus, the body Of
people remain in peaceful ignorance,
while the designing leaders have pro-
seeded to clothe themselves with pow
r, gain unto themselves riches. and
build up an empire within republic;
In empire so united through religious
anaticisn. so strong through the pos
Iessoin of money, and so well barricaded
against national legislation by laws the
Aormons themselves have enacted as
citizens of the territory of Utah that
ihe general government has found it
extremely difficult to prevent polyga-
| nous marriages and curtail the polit-
lcal powers of the church without en-
eroaching upon the constitutional rights
ST the territory and its citizens. OF the
L AT Ia p,.so
the animating spirit the self-pronounc-
I'd prophet; accepted and obeyed by all.
Never did man in Amirica hold such
complete oneman power. Realizing
| religious prejudice to be the strongest
entertained in the human heart, he
worked upon the feelings and passions
| Of the confding and fanatical until he
had thousand of followers who were
ready to kill the enemies of the
church at his command, or at his
request to die. Before Ioung's ascend
ency the Mormon church was torn with
| discussions and full of troubles. He as
sumed authority and held sway over
church and state. He dictated the course
and policy of both, made the church SUI
preme, and himself absolute monarch.
His knowledge of the world and human
aature was clear and broad. He was
courageous, sagacious, audacious. sub
/ lie. practical, magnetic, Wickedly self
/ ish. possessing the manners of a gentle
man and the spirit of a tiend. He was
a native ruler having the elements of a
great man. yet lacking the one charac-
teristic without which no man is great
Justice. No nation, no empire, no
society, no church, no state, no life can
live in the eyes of history as great UNI
less builded upon the grand and endur-
ing principles of justice and truth.
/ The Mormon power is rapidly de-
elining and will soon die away. Not
because it is an organization established
upon religious faith, but because that
faith does not embrace the principles
Of truth. 1t imposes injustice upon
the world by teaching practices an
tagonistic to the social custom of civili-
cation. 1t imposes injn..ice upon Its
own members in exacting from them
unquestioned obedience to the laws of
the Mormon church, regardless of all
other laws, ecclesiastical or civil. 1t
imposes injustice upon the woman of
the church by causing them to believe
that they can gain salvation only
through husband. and that the man
with plural wives will be axalted in
heaven. while the single man will, in
the hereafter, be debased. The laws
recently passed by congress work
grieVous burden upon some persons
who entered into poly gamy before any
law existed prohibiting that practice !;
/ their action at that time was sincere
and they thought, legitimate. These,
we believe. should have been unmo-
Tested in their domestic relations. Re-
garding these the present law is an ex-
/ post facto one and operates to the
destruction Of family ties innocently
established. It separates children from
parents. and drives into the world
class of women unfit to earn their own
/ living, incapable of supporting their
own children, and usually of an age
and in a position which makes legiti-
mate marriages to them almost impos-
sible. The consequence may be ina
gined. While we have no sympathy
with the Mormon teaching and believe
tie seFerest penalty should be imposed
upon those who in the future enter into
polygamy, we still maintain It to DO
an injustice that punishment should
be put upon the innocent in order to
reach the guilty. The present. laws
will tend to prevent the further prac-
tice of polygam but in no degree viii
they change the Mormon's religious
conviction, but as the gentle element
increases and a new civilization grows
B in and around the Mormons they will
be led to reason and reflect. Already
many have discovered the true situa-
ton and have voluntarily relnquished
their old customs and begin to question
the power and purity of the church,
A Partisan Dentists Suicide.
/ A Partisan dentist, about so years